Family
by angel1983
Summary: What if the Dursley's had been kind to Harry... AU
1. Eventful Summer

Ok Guys let's try this again. I'm posting this story here for the second time. This is a complete AU cos I wanted to explore what would have happened if Harry had been happy with the Dursley's. Before you ask I hate the version of the Dursley's that JKR wrote about. However, I'm not a huge fan of Dumbledore either and I wanted a story where Harry would be content with the muggle world and would not want to willingly become a member of the wizarding world.

Guys I'm not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with her characters. I just wanted Harry to have a real family so that it would be really hard for him to choose where he belonged when he was told he was a wizard.

As mentioned above I'm not a fan of Dumbledore. Neither am I a fan of James Potter, Sirius Black or Ron Weasly. All of them were bullies at one point of time or the other and I hate bullies. True all of them changed; well Sirius not so much but the point is this story would not be complementary to any of them. Well I don't actually plan on writing Ron but this is just fair warning.

So guys I would love to hear your thoughts on this but please just constructive criticism. I would really love to know whether you like it or hate it but please don't tell me how I'm not JK Rowling. I already know I'm not her and none of the characters belong to me.

**Eventful Summer**

"Race you down the stairs", Harry Potter called out to his cousin Dudley knowing full well that he would not back down from any challenge.

"Sure. You're on", Dudley called out and both boys ran down.

Just as it looked like Harry was about to lose he put on a burst of speed which was almost magical.

"You always do that", Dudley complained as he landed beside his cousin having jumped the last 2 steps.

"What win", Harry asked innocently knowing fully well that was not what Dudley talked about.

"No not winning…" he trailed off as he looked at his mother.

Petunia had a stern look on her face and both boys gulped.

"Hi Aunt Petunia", Harry said cheerfully in his best voice even as he looked like a mouse who had come face to face with a cat.

"And what is all the chaos here so early in the morning", she asked so sternly that both boys automatically took a step backward and gulped.

"We were just…" Dudley began but trailed off at the look on her face.

"Brilliant big D", Harry said quietly so that only Dudley could hear him and received a glare.

Petunia Dursley watched both kids squirm for a full minute with a hidden smile. _They look adorable_ she thought. However she schooled her features to the sternest manner possible while trying hard not to laugh out loud.

"And what have I told you about running and jumping in the house", she asked them.

"That we shouldn't do it", Harry answered head bowed trying to look repentant while Dudley copied his gesture. "Sorry Aunt Petunia", he continued knowing that his aunt would forgive him anyway.

"Yeah sorry mom", Dudley said copying Harry's gesture knowing that Harry was better at getting out of trouble with his mom than he was.

"Alright you two, get into the kitchen".

Vernon Dursley was already at the table with the paper in one hand as the boys and Petunia walked in.

Petunia walked over and kissed Vernon good morning while both boys made gagging noises.

"All right you two that's enough. I still haven't decided on your punishment for running down the stairs". That caused both boys to immediately sit at the table heads bowed.

"So who won", Vernon chuckled knowing well that it would have been Harry.

"Stop encouraging them Vernon", Petunia scolded her husband which caused both boys to snigger while Vernon looked at her with a sheepish expression.

"All right boys. I'm off to work. Be nice to Petunia and no fighting. I will pick up your application forms to Smeltings on my way to work".

Vernon did not miss the apprehension on Harry's face at the mention of their new school.

"C'mon Harry you're still not worried about going to Smeltings are you", he asked the boy gently.

"No Uncle Vernon, it's just that…." Harry just trailed off.

Knowing what he was apprehensive about his uncle just knelt in front of him and made sure he was looking into Harry's eyes before he spoke.

"Harry you still aren't thinking about what happened last week, are you?"

"It's not the first time Uncle Vernon. What if something strange happens while I'm at school and everyone blames me?"

Vernon sighed knowing full well that Harry's fears were not entirely misplaced. While he and Petunia had tried full well to give Harry as normal a life as possible the truth was Harry wasn't normal at all. Strange things had happened around Harry for years.

While Vernon and Petunia knew full well why these things seemed to happen only to him they thought Harry too young to know the truth. _Or Petunia thought Harry too young_. Vernon did not agree with his wife on this but decided to let her have her way for now. Against his better judgment he thought as he looked at the scared little boy in front of him. Harry deserved to know why he made these strange things happen and Vernon decided to have another conversation with his wife about this in the near future. For now though he needed to reassure his nephew that he was not a _freak_ as the other kids at school called him but a well loved normal young man.

"Uncle Vernon", Harry called out and Vernon smiled reassuringly at him.

"What happened at school was not your fault Harry"

"But I flew Uncle Vernon. Nobody else can do that or nobody except _freaks_ is what the other kids say", he finished in a small voice.

Before Vernon could say anything however Dudley's angry voice interrupted them.

"Has anyone else been calling you that Harry? What are you not telling me?"

For the second time that day Harry looked like a rat caught in a trap. He squirmed from head to toe not knowing how to answer his cousin. Dudley was extremely protective of Harry and would not hesitate to hurt anybody who called him a foul name. The result of this had been numerous detentions at school and loads of punishments at home. Harry had learned pretty early on that telling Dudley about the other kids teasing him would only lead to trouble for his cousin. Although the number of kids who teased him had decreased dramatically thanks to Dudley there was one or two who would not hesitate to cause him trouble. Harry for his part simply learned to ignore these kids in order to avoid getting Dudley into trouble.

This pretty much meant that he had not told Dudley what happened after he landed on the roof of the school. Dudley was still glaring at him and Harry knew he thought he was hiding something.

"Nothing's happened Dudley", Harry told him in a tired voice which prompted his uncle to put an end to it. He knew Harry had stopped worrying about Smeltings for now and had started to worry about Dudley's reaction and hid a small smile.

"Alright boys that's enough. I don't want to see the house blown up by the time I come back so you two need to stop fighting now".

"We're not fighting dad", Dudley responded indignantly. "Yeah Uncle Vernon", Harry added.

"Oh then if you two aren't so busy _arguing_ with each other I'm sure you won't mind helping your aunt with her chores, would you now?" he finished glaring at the two of them.

Dudley's righteous anger at his cousin for having kept things from him evaporated at the look on his dad's face. Vernon could get pretty angry when he wanted to and Dudley did not need his dad mad at him a week before his birthday.

At both boys silence Vernon stood up slowly.

"All right I'm finally off to work. Behave kids", he added as he clapped both boys on the shoulder before leaving.

"So you wanna go play video games", he heard Harry ask his cousin as Petunia closed the door behind him. Before he could open his mouth though Petunia interrupted him.

"I know Vernon, I know. We'll have to tell him soon", was all she said.

Vernon sighed, kissed her goodbye and got into his car. This was going to be a long and eventful holiday.


	2. The Stranger

Ok the second chapter. This chapter contains a character not at all related to the Harry Potter series but is not an OC either. It's Damon Salvatore from Vampire's Diaries. I don't know if you guys would be familiar with the show but for those of you who don't Damon is a vampire and not a very nice one in the show. I am borrowing him here for a simple reason. I need his powers of compulsion.

Basically I'm assuming that Damon is a friend of Lily's and protects Harry. How is revealed in the next chapter. And I have not marked this as a crossover for the simple reason that Damon will not play a huge part in this story.

The Stranger

I watched Vernon kiss Petunia and thought for a fleeting moment about interrupting them. If nothing else it would have been fun. Petunia is easer to antagonize and that was my specialty. She was always easier to mess with than Lily.

Lily.

She is never far from my thoughts. Hasn't been since the day I met her all those years ago.

She is the reason I'm here after all. The only question is now that I'm here am I brave enough to do this. Brave enough to face those green eyes again.

I will never know why Petunia sends me a picture of Harry every year on his birthday but I'm in a way grateful that she does. Though I wish she could have taken a picture of Harry without his glasses. He looks too much like a Potter in them.

James Potter.

Now that's a name I would love to forget. Yet I remember him almost as easily as Lily.

I shake my head as I realize that I have just been sitting there wallowing in old memories for a while. God I'm becoming soft.

I step out of the car towards the house and ring the doorbell before I have time to change my mind. I can just make out Petunia's form through the curtains but she does not seem to have heard the bell. Oh well. There's always another time. Before I have time to walk away though I hear a child call out "I've got it Aunt Petunia"

Harry.

I couldn't move even if I wanted to. The door opened and a messy mop of black hair was the first thing I saw. Curious green eyes peeked at me from behind the glasses and I felt my breath catch in my throat.

I did not hear Petunia walk up to the door nor did I hear her chastise Harry and her son for opening the door without telling her. I was still mesmerized by those green eyes. But I did hear her call my name and I looked at her.

"Finally! I have been trying to get your attention for the last five minutes". She most definitely sounded annoyed and I just gave her my traditional smirk knowing that it would probably just annoy her even more. I couldn't help it. I loved getting under her skin.

"Hello Tuney". She just snarled at me. I knew she hated that name. It bought back too many memories of another guy dressed in black; another tormentor.

"What are you doing here?"

Surprisingly enough she did not snap like I expected. Instead her voice held concern. Something I was not comfortable with.

"And here I was thinking you missed me", I replied with my traditional arrogant smirk back in place. "You sure know how to hurt a guy's feelings"

She just shook her head at my antics. "Don't just stand there. Come in".

I stepped into the house and walked to the living room behind her. My keen hearing picked up the sounds of the kids discussing me upstairs.

The first thing I saw in the living room was her. Green eyes and red hair arm in arm with her sister. For the second time that day I felt my breath catch in my throat. I blinked back the sudden tears I felt come to my eyes and turned away from the picture.

The understanding smile on Petunia's face only made me angry so I quickly gave her the bags I had with me.

She had an amused look on her face but made no move to take the bags away from me.

"You can give them yourselves", she said and before I had a chance to protest she had moved towards the stairs and called the boys down.

Harry and his cousin walked into the living room looking at me curiously wondering who I was.

"Hello Harry", I said kneeling in front of him taking in every inch of his appearance.

"You have your mother's eyes", I observed and got a smile in response. There were also questions on his face though and I nodded my head to let him know that he could ask them. I had a fair idea of what his first question would be in any case.

"You knew my mum?"

He did not disappoint me. I smiled. "Yeah I met her when she was in college".

"And did you know my dad as well?"

This was a question I had not expected. My smile dimmed just a little and he noticed.

"Yeah Harry I knew him as well. Perhaps not as well as your mum", I added.

"I'm sorry sir. I didn't mean to upset you. It's just that…" he trailed off while I looked at him slightly gob smacked.

I should not have been surprised that he was an observant and sensitive child. Without the influence of Potter and his friends he had grown up to be all Lily. Petunia had remarked in her letters that he had a compassionate streak that rivaled Lily's.

"You didn't Harry. You just caught me by surprise that's all. I haven't thought about your father in a long time"

I heard Petunia snort behind me. She knew I was lying, _James Potter far from my thoughts. _That was never possible. I hated him as much as I loved Lily. He was the one who killed her after all.

I felt my appearance change as I became angrier and knew I had to stop thinking about Potter. Petunia sensed danger as well because she changed the subject almost immediately by telling me that I hadn't even introduced myself properly to the kids. I stood up and grinned at her cheekily. I just received a glare in return. She seemed to be doing that a lot around me.

I turned to the boys and bowed to them formally. They giggled.

"Right proper introductions. Boys my name is Damon Salvatore".


	3. Wizards, Witches and Nosy Neighbours

What I'm assuming – and yes I knew I'm using a lot of creative license – is that wizards whose minds are not strong enough can be compelled. So Mrs. Figg who is basically a squib is being compelled by Damon into believing that Harry is being abused by the Dursleys and does not lead a happy life.

Guys the feeling I get from JKR's stories Dumbledore deliberately placed Harry with the Dursleys knowing fully well that Petunia and Vernon would more than likely mistreat him. He may have done it with great reluctance but that is what I see when I read HP. So in my version Dumbledore does the same only with a well little more villainous twist. He knows that Harry because he is mistreated by his only family will happily accept the wizarding world. Petunia however mends fences with Lily without him knowing anything about it and comes to love Harry. Lily forewarns her of the danger she faces and Petunia who does not want Harry to go back to the wizarding world asks Damon to compel Figg… Oof the AN's are getting longer

Wizards, Witches and nosy neighbors

The boys happily walked upstairs after receiving their birthday gifts earlier than normal. I heard them chattering all the way upstairs about how they couldn't wait to play some of the games.

"You know you spoil them too much right". I heard the disapproval in her tone and snorted.

"As his godfather it's my job to spoil him", I argued.

"He doesn't know much about his dad, does he?" I observed. "Not that I'm complaining or anything but he doesn't seem to know anything".

Petunia did not even blink at this statement.

"You've been talking to Vernon", she accused simply.

"You have to tell him Tuney if not now then on his eleventh birthday".

I watched the emotions play on her face; guilt, fear and finally anger.

"Tell him exactly what Damon? That the life he is living right now is a lie. That there is another world out there that I'm hiding him from. That there is a lady two doors down that we are compelling right now into forgetting that he has a happy life here. That I have to run home with him every time I see his people observing us. Tell him exactly what Damon", she finished having run out of steam.

I could see the tears she was trying to hide unsuccessfully and I actually felt sorry for her. _Me_. Damon Salvatore. A vampire and a killer feel sorry for a human. Imagine that.

"Technically I'm the one doing the compelling…" I began but trailed at the look on her face.

"I know you're scared", I began again only to be interrupted by her.

"Scared, scared! Try terrified Damon. You know what goes on out there better than I do. You know if I send him there it will be the death of him. I may not know a lot but I do know that I lost my sister to that world. I'm not ready to lose m... her son to them".

"He is as much your son as he is hers", I said catching her slip.

"You know he called me mommy when he was younger but I couldn't let him do that. I thought she'd hate me and I made him call me Aunt instead. It doesn't matter what he calls me Damon. I love him the same as Dudley and I'm not ready to let him go just yet".

I saw her tears and understood her desperation but unlike her I was also practical. They would come for him and I knew she couldn't stop them. Both me and Vernon agreed on this one. And I knew Lily would want her son to know about her world.

"It's not your choice to make Petunia. It's his". My use of her full name more than anything else told her how serious I was about this.

"Well as his guardian shouldn't it be mine? He's eleven years old. He is not an adult to be making such choices".

"I can't compel all wizards Petunia. I can only compel the ones whose minds are weak. If not don't you think I would have stopped all this years ago", I yelled.

I took a deep breath. I really needed to calm down before I alerted the kids that something was wrong. Luckily enough the games seemed to have distracted them. They hadn't come investigating. Y_et_.

"Whether you like it or not Petunia they will come for him and since this is The Boy Who Lived they will come in person. They will tell Harry all of these stories which make their world sound the best and they will accuse you of being jealous of Lily and hiding all of this from him".

"You don't have to threaten me with all of this. Vernon already does enough of it. What do you want me to do Damon", she sounded tired. "I just want to do whatever is best for him Damon. I don't want him hurt or worse…"

She did not finish the thought and I was grateful for it.

"Damn James Potter and Severus Snape".

"You know I agree with that sentiment completely".

"What are you doing here anyway? I've been asking you to visit lord knows how many times and you never do it. Is there something wrong?"

"Tuney, Tuney, always so suspicious. Nothing's wrong. In fact I came here because I need your help".

"You need my help?"

She sounded skeptical and I couldn't blame her for that

"What kind of help?"

"I need an address. An address you know really well in fact so it won't be much of a trouble for you".

Petunia was a hell of a lot smarter than people gave her credit for. She figured out what I wanted immediately.

"No. No way Damon. He will kill you if he sees you".

"Yeah well I'm already kinda dead so... You know I can find him. I will eventually. This will just help me do this quicker. C'mon Petunia. Please", I finished with my most charming smile which seemed to have absolutely no effect on her. I knew she would relent eventually though and she did just that.

"All right", she wrote down the address I needed on a piece of paper.

"Thank you. You will not regret this Tuney".

"Oh I doubt that very much". She shook her head and walked towards the kitchen. I followed her. "Why don't you stay for lunch Damon?"

"Nah you wouldn't have what I want for lunch anyway". I joked and for a second she looked disgusted before she managed to cover it up. I just laughed at the expression on her face.

"Think about what I said. Talk to him and tell him the truth before he finds out from someone else", I said walking towards the door.

"Leaving already", she sounded surprised.

"Yeah", I said waving the piece of paper in front of her face. "I have a lot of work to do"

"At least say goodbye to the boys before you leave".

"Nah I will just meet them another time. Tell Vernon I will call him and will explain what I'm doing. And do not call him right now with this. You can't convince me to not meet him Petunia. I need to do this to keep Harry safe at school".

"And what exactly are you doing anyway? You haven't told me anything Damon. As much as I want to see Harry safe, I don't want you getting hurt either. Despite what you may think I do care about what happens to you".

"I know", I said softly.

"I will be fine. Don't worry about me. Oh and don't worry I already paid Mrs. Figg a visit few days back. The compulsion hasn't worn off yet and no one's suspicious. We are safe for now. But do consider what I told you and tell Harry the truth soon".

"Take care of him Petunia. Goodbye".

She surprised me by pulling me into a hug. I was startled for a second but responded by putting my arms around her.

"Goodbye Damon. Don't do anything stupid okay", she warned me.

I just smiled at her before walking towards my rental car.


	4. The Big Birthday

No special AN's for this chapter… Just a simple one… I think there are some phrases copied from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone… Anything you recognize does not belong to me…

**The Big Birthday**

It was the same story every year.

No matter how hard Vernon and Petunia tried and no matter how tired Dudley was he was always up the crack of dawn on his birthday. Not only did he wake up early he also sent the rest of the house in an uproar. Because of this no one was surprised when Dudley rushed into his cousin's room at 5 A.M. and tried to wake him up.

After five years of the same the rest of the household was resigned to waking up early on his birthday and so when an hyper-active Dudley and a sober and tired looking Harry walked into the kitchen they already found Vernon and Petunia at the table ready for breakfast.

Two hours later the family was just getting ready to go out when the telephone rang.

"Ignore it Petunia. We're going to be late!"

"Vernon! It could be something important or someone wanting to wish Dudley for his birthday. Hello…" she answered

Upon completing the conversation Petunia wished she had taken Vernon's advice and left the phone alone.

With a morose and somewhat apologetic look she walked into the kitchen knowing that the next few minutes would not be pleasant.

"Can we leave already Petunia? We're going to be late and then we won't have time to cover the entire area".

Petunia's apologetic look vanished completely to be replaced by a look of annoyance.

"I swear you're worse than the kids sometimes. In any case we can't leave immediately. We will be entertaining a visitor", she finished. Her apologetic look was back and Vernon caught on quickly.

"No, no and no. We are not doing this every year. How does she do it every single year and what excuse did she give this time? Why didn't you just hang up the phone on her Pet. Or better yet why didn't you tell her we were moving permanently or that we had a bad case of the flu. Anything to keep that rat faced…" he trailed off as Harry and Dudley entered the house. He figured they had gotten bored from waiting outside.

"Hey dad, aren't we leaving yet? We won't have time to cover the entire area", Dudley asked his father impatiently. "Yeah Uncle Vernon I want to see the snakes. We didn't have time to see them the last time".

Vernon just chuckled. "I'm never going to understand your fascination with snakes Harry. Just a few more minutes and we can leave. Piers will be joining us"

"Ah dad! That's not fair. He always ruins everything. Can we not take him with us this year? Please".

Before Vernon could agree with Dudley or say anything which Petunia knew would not be good she interrupted them.

"That's enough of your whining young man…"

"But mum…"

"No buts. Piers is our guest and you will treat him so. I do not want to hear anything more on this subject. You and Harry will go wait in the kitchen till we are ready to leave".

Harry sighed while Dudley just glared at his mum.

Vernon narrowed his eyes. "Keep that up Dudders and you will be spending your birthday locked in your room. I suggest you apologise to your mum right away and go wait in the kitchen".

Dudley just stared at the ground rebelliously for a minute. He then apologized in a small voice and walked into the kitchen. Harry went after him.

Vernon's eyes were still narrowed but before he could call Dudley back and spoil the day Petunia intervened.

"It's ok Vernon. You said it yourself; this happens every year and Dudders is not happy. Besides he is smart enough to know that Piers does not like Harry".

Vernon just grunted in reply and walked into the living room.

Not five minutes later Piers walked in accompanied by his mum who thanked Vernon and Petunia for graciously allowing her son to take part in the outing.

Vernon looked like he had bitten into something sour and Petunia accepted the thanks on behalf of him as well.

**Five minutes after that the little family plus Piers left for the zoo.**

The weather that morning was surprisingly nice and the boys enjoyed the walk around the zoo. Contrary to Dudley's predictions Piers was well behaved and the three kids spent time eating ice creams and watching the animals. They had lunch in a nice little café complete with a huge cake.

After lunch they all moved into the reptile house. The boys walked towards the biggest and the scariest snake there while the adults drifted off. Dudley and Piers were disappointed to find that the snake was asleep while Harry just stared at it in fascination. Piers and Dudley banged on the glass to try and wake the snake up, but Harry just shooed them off.

"Sorry about that", he apologized. Even as he did so he knew he was being foolish; until the unexpected happened. The snake raised its head as if it had heard Harry and nodded.

"Can you hear me?" Harry asked astonished. But before he could continue any further Piers ran towards him and knocked him to the ground. Harry sat up a little enraged and watched them just in time to see the glass disappear and the snake run out.

Screams rang throughout the reptile house as people started panicking at the sight of such a huge snake running loose. The snake patiently unwound itself and slithered in front of Harry.

"Thanks!" it hissed before disappearing beyond the door.


	5. The Boy Who Lived

Flashback from the day after Harry Potter is left on the Dursleys doorstep. Inspired by a line from the Philosopher's Stone in which JKR mentions how Harry is woken up by his aunt's screams.

"**The Boy Who Lived"**

"Oh my God! Vernon get down here quickly. Vernon…" Petunia's shrieks woke Vernon up with a start. For a moment he was disoriented not knowing what was happening but then he heard Petunia yell his name again and praying it was not a robber he ran down the stairs.

He had run all the way to the front door and was a little breathless when he peered out from behind Petunia. Having seen no robbers or anyone who was even remotely dangerous he turned to Petunia to ask why she had shrieked like a banshee only to notice that she was looking down at her feet with a stunned expression on her face.

Wondering what she was staring at Vernon looked down to see something which made him question if he was still awake or if this was some weird dream. He pinched himself and rubbed at his eyes but on opening them again he still saw the same thing. _No this can't be real_ he thought.

Unlike his wife however he recovered long enough to bend down and picked up the sleeping baby from its basket. Even as he did so this felt ridiculous. His mind refused to process it. _Someone had most likely in the middle of the night left a sleeping baby at his front door_... _A baby who had slept through the entire thing including Petunia's shrieks and his loud runs. A baby who even now was sleeping peacefully in his arms._

Petunia's eyes followed Vernon's progress all the way when he picked up the baby in his arms. She opened and closed her mouth a couple of times looking remarkably like a fish out of water. Finally her brain woke up enough for her to actually speak but even then she could only state the obvious.

"That's a baby".

A long pause then Vernon raised his head up to actually look at her. He however said nothing. There was nothing he could say.

"That's a baby", she repeated.

A pause; then

"I know".

"But Vernon that's a baby".

Again a pause.

"I know Pet. I can see you know",

"But Vernon. It's a…"

"God help me Pet but if you say it's a baby one more time", Vernon's face actually purpled a bit but Petunia took no notice of that. Instead she just stared at the child in his arms and opened her mouth as if to speak when Vernon finally lost it.

"I. Know", he hissed and simply turned his back on her to walk into the warmth the house provided.

It was then that Petunia noticed the letter. A letter written in loopy writing which she knew really well. It was then that she finally realized who the baby must be and why he was on their doorstep. On auto pilot she bent down to pick up the letter and the basket and followed Vernon into the kitchen.

Vernon was sitting at the kitchen table with the baby in his arms. At the sound of Petunia's approach he turned towards her and opened his mouth to suggest that they should contact the police and child services however one look at Petunia's white face had him closing his mouth and rushing towards her with the sleeping baby in his arms.

"Are you all right dear", he asked his wife while Petunia attempted to stave off a panic attack.

Guiding her to the kitchen table with a baby in his hand wasn't the easiest thing he had ever done but he managed to do so. On sitting down Petunia simply covered her eyes and sobbed her heart out. Vernon was confused and tired and now his wife was crying. Could things get really worse he thought to himself.

The answer came to him in the form of a whimper from his arms. With all that had happened with his wife Vernon had had to ignore the sleeping baby in his arms and said baby was now letting him know that he didn't like to be ignored with his soft whimpers.

"Oh no…" he whispered to the baby. "Don't you start crying too", he admonished gently. Somehow despite everything he couldn't find it in his heart to be upset with the innocent child now staring back up at him. Brilliant green eyes looked at him from under a mop of jet black hair and Vernon felt a wave of familiarity wash over him. He wondered if he actually knew the child.

He turned towards his wife to remark on this only to see that she was still sobbing hysterically. He realized that he needed to get her calmed down and find out what was upsetting her so badly. Vernon just left the little baby in the basket Petunia had somehow managed to place on the kitchen table before he walked over and simply hugged his wife. He just stayed that way whispering nonsense till he felt her calm down enough.

"Petunia, love can you please tell me what's wrong", he pleaded with her.

Hi wife's reactions were starting to scare him. The last time he had seen Petunia crying this badly was at her parent's funeral.

"Petunia dear…" he tried again and it was only then that he noticed the letter clutched in her hand. Before he could take it out of her hand and find out what it was he heard her whisper

"It's Harry".

"I'm sorry. What the letter is about Harry? Harry who?" he asked her now utterly confused.

The only Harry Vernon knew was his nephew and he wondered why a letter about him would make Petunia cry. _Especially when she is yet to open it_ he thought.

Petunia though had not said anything else and simply stared at the opposite wall.

"Er… Petunia I really don't understand dear", he said.

"The baby Vernon. It's Harry", she repeated dully.

"WHAT?" Shock was the most prominent expression on Vernon's face. "How… That's not possible Petunia. Why would Lily and James leave Harry on our doorstep? This is ridiculous".

Vernon wondered if somehow seeing a baby right at the door had somehow addled Petunia's brain. The James Potter he knew would have never for anything in the world entrusted his son to a _muggle_. After all the man had never even let Petunia and him see baby Harry. Even as he thought that though he reflected on the familiarity he had felt with the baby. The eyes he thought; _that's what I was thinking about._ The baby's eyes had somehow reminded him of Lily.

"It's because it wasn't James' decision. Or even Lily's", was Petunia's tired reply.

"What? How?" Vernon closed his mouth in frustration and tried again. "And how would you know this?" he asked her.

Wordlessly Petunia simply handed him the letter which miraculously was free of tears.

"But you haven't even opened it", he protested weakly.

"I know the writing Vernon. It's Dumbledore's", came the reply.

"Albus Dumbledore. Lily's old headmaster", he clarified.

"Yes"

"But how would you even know his handwriting?"

"Because I still have the letter of rejection he wrote to me all those years ago".

"So you're saying that you know this letter is from Dumbledore Lily's old headmaster and you recognize this from a letter which was written to you years ago", he asked her.

Surprisingly Petunia gave a short laugh.

Vernon got a smile on his face seeing her laugh but the smile soon vanished as he thought about what she was saying.

_I guess the best thing to do is open the_ letter he thought and did just that.

A piece of paper fell out and Vernon noticed that it was written in the same loopy writing. It was short and to the point. It simply said what Petunia had already guessed. James and Lily were dead and Dumbledore asked them to take care of Harry as their own.

Vernon heaved a sigh as he finished reading the _note_. Calling it a letter might be a bit of a stretch he thought. Petunia had always said the wizarding world was so formal but this note belied that. They had not been told anything about how Lily and James had died, how Harry had survived and why he had been left like an unwanted child on their doorstep. _Would it have killed them to explain all of this in person?_ he thought.

Before he could say or do anything though he heard the telephone ring. Vernon was almost tempted to not answer. However he realized that someone may have some news about what had happened to the Potters. Realistically he knew that was a very long shot. The wizarding world did not use telephones.

As soon as he answered though he was forced to revise his conclusion, maybe the wizarding world did not use telephones but not all of Lily's friends were wizards. No there was someone who knew perfectly well how to use a phone.

"Hello Damon", he answered and heard the cultured voice on the other end say something.

Petunia heard Damon's name and realized that her worst fears had come through. Damon would never have called unless there was a huge emergency. She hadn't needed either Vernon's confirmation or Damon's phone call to know that her sister was gone and that little Harry had no one but her. She felt fresh tears break out as she thought about the last time she saw her sister and the promise she had made. Her attention finally turned to the tiny baby in the crib and she noticed for the first time the scar on his forehead. She picked him up and set him on her lap and curiously examined the scar. _What had happened?_ She wondered.

_It doesn't matter_ she thought. Nothing else mattered to her except her promise to Lily. Her promise that she would protect Harry to the best of her abilities. Her promise that she would make sure that she would take care of Harry as well as Lily would have. Her promise that Harry would not grow up alone.

It was this she reflected on now when she thought about the fact that she would have to tell Harry the truth about himself.


	6. You're a Wizard Harry

Again some stuff I wanna explain. In this story Petunia fears the wizarding world not because she thinks they are freaks who could hurt her but basically because she knows her sister dies at the hands of an evil wizard. So to her Harry going to such a world is a scary thought…

Guys this is the last chapter I had written. This story might have at the most one or two most chapters which I will complete at some point of time in the near future. I'm not abandoning this but for now it will remain a WIP

"**You're a Wizard Harry"**

"Are you all right Harry?" Vernon knelt beside his nephew to see if the kid was ok. The snake had been huge and had been very close to him. Harry looked like he was in shock. He was still staring at the spot the snake had been last.

"Harry, its ok the snake's gone. It can't hurt you". Vernon gripped his arm and gave it a little shake. Harry finally tore his eyes away from the spot the snake had been and looked up at his uncle.

"Did you see that Uncle Vernon?" he whispered.

"Yeah Harry. I did. But like I said the snake's gone and can't hurt you".

"No. It spoke to me. It said 'Thanks'. I… It was really weird".

"Wha…" Vernon knew he looked ridiculous with his mouth hanging open like that but he couldn't help it. He was pretty sure he had heard Harry say that the snake had talked to him. _Petunia had never mentioned anything about wizards talking to snakes had she_ he thought.

"Harry snakes can't talk to people. That's just impossible". Even as he said that though he reflected on some of the _impossible _things that had happened in his nephew's life over the years and gave a little shake of his head. No he thought _it just couldn't be possible. Harry just couldn't be talking to snakes._

He offered his still stunned looking nephew a hand and helped him to his feet.

"C'mon Harry, Dudders, Pet, I think it's time we went home".

Petunia who apparently had been with Dudley the whole time hadn't seen a thing. Piers however had and was eager to describe his adventures. Vernon knew he should get them all out of there before the kid decided to blabber something.

"C'mon Pet", he called out again and walked with Harry and Piers towards the car.

_He had guessed_ _right_ he thought. Once in the car Piers started talking about how Harry had spoken to the snake and how the snake had seemed to understand him and how the glass had disappeared just like that. Petunia's face seemed to go whiter at the narration and Vernon stopped the car midway fearing that she would faint. He knew he needed to get the kid under control before the whole neighborhood realized what had happened.

Before he could say a word however Dudley took charge.

"Don't be ridiculous Piers", he scoffed "Harry can't talk to snakes".

"Oh yeah! You gonna defend that freaky cousin of yours again Dursely".

"Listen Polkiss", Dudley began only to be stopped by Vernon's angry voice.

"That's enough both of you", he began with a glare.

"I know you think you saw Harry talk to a snake Piers but we know humans can't talk to snakes. Yes Piers I know you believe you saw something really weird but trust me it must have just been your mind playing tricks on you. I was in the same room as you and did not see a thing ok".

"Yes sir", Piers nodded obediently however Vernon doubted if the kid believed him.

"And as for your abominable behavior in calling my nephew a freak young man I would like you to apologise to him. No Harry you don't get to say anything about this", he added as Harry looked like he was about to protest. "NOW Mr. Polkiss", he finished.

Piers hesitated for a bit before turning towards Harry and apologizing to him.

It was a subdued group that headed back to Privet Drive. Piers' mum having heard about the incident at the zoo on the radio was waiting for them at their doorstep to make sure her son was ok.

Unnoticed by his aunt and uncle who were seeing Piers and his mum off and Dudley who was glaring at them Harry slipped quietly into the house and into his room. Though Vernon had defended him so thoroughly in the car and at the zoo Harry knew with absolute certainty that he had set the snake free and that he had spoken to it. _How much of a freak was he?_ He wondered. Was this incident going to be enough for his family to finally realize that?

Tears of fear and frustration filled his eyes and Harry just fell on his bed and began to cry. Strong arms wrapped around him and he automatically turned toward the source of comfort and let himself cry on his aunt's chest not even caring that he was 10 years old and that 10 years old did not sit in their aunt's lap sobbing their hearts out.

Petunia did not say a word. Instead she just hugged him and tried to show by that simple gesture how much she cared and loved this little boy. For a while the only source of noise was the young man's tears. A bit later Harry's cries died down to sniffles as he pulled back from his aunt. Petunia's own eyes were watery he noticed though she had not cried.

"Feeling better Harry", she enquired quietly and Harry nodded a little slowly not trusting himself to speak.

Before she could say anything else though Vernon looked into the room and spoke softly. "Everything all right in here?"

"Everything's fine Vernon", Petunia answered with an attempt at a watery smile. "Why don't we both give Harry a minute to calm down" she suggested as she gently led her husband towards their room.

The minute they entered their room Vernon shut the door and turned towards her but Petunia beat him to it.

"I know love. We'll tell him today. Let him just get himself together and then we'll tell both of them".

Knowing what a huge step this was for his wife, Vernon did not say anything but just came forward and gave his wife a tight hug. Petunia let him comfort her for a minute letting herself forget all her fears in that embrace.

"I love you", his voice was soft.

"I love you too", she answered automatically. "Thank you", she continued.

"For what?" he asked bewildered and a bit worried but she just gave him a soft smile and pulled back. She knew she needed to do this before her courage failed her.

"Could you do me a favor? There's a bunch of Lily's things that I have put away in the attic. Photo albums and a couple of her old books. Do you think you can bring them down for me while I get the boys to the living room?"

"Of course Pet", he answered softly and with a smile he walked out the door.

Once outside though he lost his smile. Though he had been telling Petunia for years that Harry needed to know who he was he wasn't sure that telling him would go over so well. True he had barely known Lily and he knew practically next to nothing about the magical world unlike Petunia. What he did know was that his wife was scared. And it wasn't just about Harry being different. No she feared for Harry's life and well and truly believed that the magical world was a dangerous place. What would happen he wondered if Harry chose that world and pulled the family apart like she feared? What would happen he wondered if Dudley just like his mother loathed Harry because he was different? If the boys became estranged and barely spoke to each other just like Lily and Petunia had. Would he still be able to act unbiased like now? Would Dudley still love him if he took Harry's side like he knew he would?

Or worse would Harry's entry into the world be the end of him. Vernon knew for sure that if that happened their entire family would be gone. Harry was the glue that held them together. He was the reason Petunia was able to function without too much guilt and he made Dudley a better person. Without him he knew both his wife and son would be lost.

Vernon shook his head forcefully knowing that these thoughts right now would help no one. Instead he walked around towards the attic to find the items that Petunia had requested. He had seen those albums and books Petunia had wanted once and knew immediately why she had wanted them. The pictures in them moved. The books that were there were all wizard fairy tales. Lily had sent them when she had heard that Petunia was pregnant with Dudley. He wasn't sure if either boy would believe the existence of a magical world and without a witch or a wizard around and no Damon this was the best way to show them.

Slowly he unpacked the boxes and gathered the books and reluctantly walked back down the stairs to utter those four fateful words to the boy he loved like a son. Those words that would undeniably shatter this fairy tale they had been building for 9 years and bring reality crashing down around them

"_**You're a wizard Harry"**_


End file.
